Physicochemical, Phytochemical and Pharmacognostic Examination of Samanea saman
Abstract
The rain tree, or Samanea saman (Family Fabaceae), grows medium-to-large. Its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-microbial properties make it a leading medicine in Ayurveda for numerous diseases. The current study explored the pharmacognostic, physicochemical, and phytochemical qualities of S. saman leaf. The pharmacognostic assessment examined leaf morphology and microscopy. Physicochemical characteristics include analysis of ash, extractives, moisture, organic foreign matter, dry matter, and bulk density. Microscopic inspection revealed warty trichomes, fibers, prismatic crystals, and a stomatiferous outer epidermis with paracytic stomata, an archy-shaped vascular bundle, spongy tissue, and lamina layers. The phytochemical examination of consecutive extracts revealed an abundance of many bioactive compounds, including alkaloids, flavonoids, terpenoids, steroids, carbohydrates, saponins, tannins, phenols, glycosides, and oxalates. Physicochemical investigations showed total ash 6.78 (g/100g), acid-soluble and insoluble ash 2.31 and 4.47 (g/100g), water-soluble and insoluble 5.72 and 1.06 (g/100g), sulphated ash 3.29 (g/100g), alcohol-soluble extractive values 19.49 and water-soluble 27.32 (g/100g), loss on drying 5.67, organic foreign matter (OFM) 7.41, dry matter (DM) 73.74, and bulk density (BD) 13.88 (g/100g), respectively. The current research will offer suitable pharmacognostic norms and physicochemical and phytochemical evidence that are required for the right recognition and genuineness of the leaves of the concerned plant.